Student Travel Funding

A limited amount of funding from the Schultz Foundation is administered by the Science Center Directors’ Office to support student presentations at scholarly meetings.

Who is eligible to submit a request for travel funding?

Smith College science students who are co-authors of a research paper or poster, with a faculty member, AND are traveling to present this work at an academic professional conference are eligible to submit a request for travel funding. We do not fund student conference attendance without presentation of a paper or poster. NOTE: Priority for funding goes to students who work with Smith College faculty members or faculty members from another of the Five Colleges. Students who work with faculty members from other colleges or universities (for example, with a REU faculty mentor) may be considered for travel funding if other requirements are met.

If students are waiting for their presentations/posters to be accepted by the conference or meeting organizers, they can still apply and receive funding for registration, etc. However, the student will be asked to provide confirmation of acceptance of the poster/presentation. The student will be asked to pay back any funds dispersed if the poster/presentation is not ultimately accepted. The student will also be asked to return any funds distributed if the trip is cancelled.

Students are only granted Science Center travel funds once during an academic year.

In general, no funding is provided for conference attendance that occurs after a student’s graduation, even to present a paper or poster. Applications made by students who are graduating to travel to present before July 1, but after their graduation date will be considered on a case by case basis.

What is covered?

Requests for funding may include the costs of conference attendance, including the conference registration fee, travel, lodging, and food expenses. The maximum award is $500 per student, per academic year. If a larger amount is requested, please provide full justification and we may be able to suggest possible sources of additional funding.

Funds for student travel are limited, and there is no guaranteed funding of all student requests. Students are expected to pay careful attention to minimizing expenses whenever possible. Whenever possible and safe, students should choose less expensive modes of travel (i.e. public transport), share hotel rooms with other students, and take advantage of the meals included with conference registration fees. Other costs also should be kept to a minimum.

What is the process for requesting funding?

The student must apply here https://smithcollege.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_a4R9bWdlXVQ2vHf and provide documentation of the amount of funding provided by other college sources with her application. (A preview of the application questions can be found here.) Funding requests will only be considered after the student completes the application, including a prepared budget with documentation of the principal travel expenses. Each student must submit an individual request for travel funding. However, please note if you are planning to travel with a fellow Smith student.

Only requests made at least 4 weeks in advance of a conference will be considered for funding.

Students will only be awarded the amount for which they are pre-approved. Funds will be released once the student:

A. completes an expense reimbursement form (which can be found on the forms page of the controller’s office website http://www.smith.edu/controller/Forms.php and submits hard copy original receipts following the conference to Heather McQueen (mailbox in Burton 103). This must be done within two weeks of conference attendance.

Other Funding Opportunities On Campus

Other sources of professional conference travel are outlined here on the website of The Dean of the College’s Office. Susan Zachary in the Dean of the College’s Office, College Hall 203, x4900 is also happy to help answer questions about these funds.

You should also check with any faculty members you are working with. They may know of grant money or departmental endowed funds available for student travel.